A UNITY government that crosses political lines is the future for Malaysia, as the people have become increasingly frustrated and bored with political shenanigans in the midst of a global health crisis, said Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Party-based politics has done enough to divide the country, and is aggravating the hardships inflicted by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has yet to abate, said the former prime minister.

“(A unity government) is a good approach. The people, too, are tired of party politics.

“It is good if we have a government that does not prioritise party-based politics,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

To bolster the idea of a unity government, Dr Mahathir cited the example of former prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein inviting the opposition to form Barisan Nasional after the 1969 general election and subsequent racial riots in May that year.

He also cited an example from the UK, in which opposition leader Clement Attlee of the Labour Party joined prime minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet during World War II.

Dr Mahathir had first mooted the idea of a government without a political party when he was caretaker prime minister earlier this year, two days after his Pakatan Harapan administration collapsed at the end of February.

“I still think, at this time, if we want to reduce politics, we (must) put aside party matters, we (must) prioritise the country,” he said.

Sabah polls, SOP breach

He said the Perikatan Nasional-led federal government chose politics over the people’s wellbeing when it instigated the Sabah elections and allowed it to run in September.

“The government prioritises its position. It is afraid of being overthrown. So, the focus is on politics.

“And, that is why it seized power in Sabah. What was the need to seize power in Sabah? It would not have helped our economy. We knew its effects would be very bad,” he said.

“In the past, we managed to reduce the number of new (Covid-19 infections) across the whole country, but now, it has increased to more than 1,000 (new) cases a day.

“And the reason? Because we went to Sabah and violated SOP,” Dr Mahathir said.

The number of coronavirus cases swelled nationwide after the state polls at the end of September, with infections later spreading to the peninsula.

Malaysians have blamed politicians for the spike, as initial efforts to flatten the Covid-19 curve had been fruitful and brought down case levels to single digits.

Several quarters, including the Election Commission (EC), have since raised concern about holding any more elections as Covid-19 continues to spread.

However, the EC did set December 5 for the Batu Sapi by-election, as the seat was vacated following the death of former minister Liew Vui Keong.

Dr Mahathir has reportedly met with several party leaders and politicians to negotiate the formation of a unity government, including veteran MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and PN minister Dr Zulkifli Mohamad.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was also reported to have asked for the views of Bersatu’s supreme council on whether or not he should meet with Dr Mahathir, eight months after the political move that severed ties between them.

The two leaders clashed after Muhyiddin took Bersatu out of Pakatan Harapan in February, leading to the collapse of the 22-month-old government formed after the 2018 general election.

Muhyiddin now leads the federal government formed with Umno, Barisan Nasional and PAS. It has the support of Sarawak- and Sabah-based parties, including independent MPs.

After being ousted from Bersatu alongside his followers, Dr Mahathir formed a new party, Pejuang, which is awaiting registration approval from the Registrar of Societies.

From emergency to dictatorship

The unity government idea was again raised by Dr Mahathir after the Yang di-Pertuan Agong called on politicians to concentrate on efforts to fight Covid-19 and its impact on the country’s economy.

The king had also advised MPs to give their full support for Budget 2021 to best help the people badly affected by the pandemic.

This followed the ruler’s rejection of Muhyiddin’s proposal to declare an emergency, which would have suspended Parliament and postponed all elections.

But any emergency order, Dr Mahathir said, would have only unneccesarily given the prime minister overarching powers.

“(Muhyiddin) does not need that extra power. We have a problem with Covid-19 and the impact of the pandemic on the economy. This is a problem that can be addressed with existing laws.

“There is no need to set aside the law and introduce leadership by decree, which would lead to a dictatorship.

“Such a government will eventually make a mistake,” he said.

Despite the seriousness of Malaysia’s battle against Covid-19, Dr Mahathir said the country is still lucky compared with others.

“We have not reached the level where we need to suspend all laws and Parliament to deal with this problem.

“We have not reached (that level), even though many people are affected by this disease.” – November 15, 2020.